The day after a judge directed a surprise mistrial in a second-degree murder case, lawyers for the Crown and defence were in court Tuesday to determine what happens next.
Daniel Boyd Sawyer, 34, had been on trial since Nov. 15, accused of stabbing to death Alan Beach, 31, in an attack outside Red Deer’s Blarney Stone Pub on Nov. 18, 2015.
However, the trial quickly got bogged down in evidence issues, which had to be discussed without the jury present. After more than 30 days of court time, the jury heard evidence for less than five full days spread over many weeks.
The last witness was heard on Monday morning. In the afternoon, Justice Bill Hopkins called the jury back, thanked them for their service, and told them they were no longer needed.
On Tuesday morning, Red Deer Crown prosecutor Ed Ring was joined by Photini Papadatou, who is the general counsel for regional prosecutions with Alberta Justice and Solicitor General.
Crown prosecutors and defence lawyer Chris Archer discussed legal issues surrounding the mistrial and how the case will proceed.
Those discussions and the issues at stake remain under a publication ban.
Lawyers and the judge will be back in court on Thursday afternoon to hear his decisions on several issues before the next step is taken.
Sawyer remains in custody.
pcowley@reddeeradvocate.com
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